Stick Gripps Founded.
Stick Gripps was founded in March 2007 by Cleve Alleyne and Trius Pompe.
Although Cleve knew Trius for many years, it was around this time that Trius showed Cleve the idea for what is
now known as stick Gripps. Cleve felt that Stick Gripps could be a great grip enhancement for drummers and suggested
they create a partnership. They were both aware of other products on the market, but Cleve felt strong that Stick Gripps
could be competitive enough to not only survive but eventually become the grip of choice for drummers everywhere.
With this thought Cleve immediately put a pair of Stick Gripps in the hands of his long time friend, drummer
Adrian Grannum. Adrian loved them! He appreciated the ability to customize the ring position during installation,
claiming it gave him the ability to personalize things to suit his style of playing. Adrian noted that the ring gave him
the ability to play a bit more open handed without fear of loosing a stick, also aiding his general endurance.
Six months later Cleve's partner Trius decided to opt out of Stick Gripps to follow other interests.
Cleve was given full charge of Stick Gripps future. From this point Cleve spent much time refining Stick Gripps
to It's current state, and three step installation process. Being a musician himself,
( click here for video ) it was now time to check
out a few more friends, Cleve's next stop, Guitar Center. The guys at Guitar Center also loved Stick Gripps. Things were
looking good, but there was still ground work to be laid in order for Stick Gripps to achieve greater availability to
the public.
Cleve Visit Namn.
In October 2007 Cleve started thinking about the NAMM Show.
He was put in touch with Jimmy Ford and Jay Gaylen of Ford Custom Drums by his long time friend Ron Bruner Sr., Jimmy and Jay
allowed Cleve to share their space on the floor at the 2008 NAMM Show in Anaheim. Stick Gripps received overwhelming response
from drummers young and old. Drummers appreciated the natural feel in addition to no loss of tonal quality during cross sticking
and rim shots. Others noted the ability to perform dynamic cymbal swells with the sleeve end of Stick Gripps. Drummers were also
surprised that Stick Gripps didn't effect the weight or balance of the drumsticks as much as they thought it might, nor did
they feel like they would blister. Most found Stick Gripps retained a natural stick feel. Cleve took advantage of this
opportunity by giving samples to as many people as possible. Namm confirmed Cleve's initial assessment of Stick Gripps,
putting Cleve in touch with many new supporters of the product. There was lots of buzz at Namm!
Stick Gripps Welcomes Anthony C. Fletcher
Cleve has known Tony Fletcher for the better part of 30 years. They met when Tony
was comissioned to produce artwork for Cleve's first album. So when thoughts of a graphic artist to produce art for
Stick Gripps came about, Tony was Cleve's first choice.
Tony Fletcher has worked as a creative consultant, graphic designer,
art director, writer and illustrator for scientists, advertising agencies, record companies, and magazines.Tony will now create
professionally, customized logos and original one of a kind unique graphics exclusively for the
Stick Gripps Brand.
He has provided images and designs for many top companies in publishing, music, and fashion, including
CBS, SONY, EPIC, CAPITOL, ELEKTRA, RCA/BMG, ISLAND, FLYTE TYME, GRP, SPORTS ILLUSTRATED, Phat Farm,
Ecko Unlimited Inc., and DKNY Jeans, among others.
Find out more about Anthony C. Fletcher Click here:
The Crane Test
Cleve later produced a Stick Gripps ad which suspends him off the ground using a crane, hanging from a pair of
drumsticks with and without Stick Gripps, showing the advantages of Stick Gripps verses a bare set of drumsticks.
Cleves theory, if you can hang a person's body weight from 2 drumsticks appx. 3 times as long as you can a bare pair of
drumsticks, one can only imagine how great Stick Gripps would be in an an actual music situation. The Stick Gripps crane
test produced results of 7 seconds without Stick Gripps and 19 seconds with Stick Gripps. Cleve's weight at the time of
the Stick Gripps crane test was 198 Pounds.
As president of Stick Gripps, Cleve's vision is to create a company which reaches it's full potential. Cleve's Patent
Pending grip is an end user customizable grip, adaptable to all form of hand held items from drumsticks, hammers,
ratchet handles, pool sticks, tennis rackets, golf clubs and more. Possibilities for Stick Gripps are many. Stick Gripps
for drum sticks just happened to be the launch point for Cleve's patent pending grip because of Cleve's love for music. His
greater vision is to use the success of Stick Gripps to do things in the world that gives back, embracing a quote from his
first album, "Life's Greatest Blessings Are Received By Those Who Give."
On September 20 & 21, 2009 one of Cleve's good friends Renee Francis arranged a visit with students in music classes
at Walnut Grove and Edgewood Middle schools in Covina California. Cleve shared his story about Stick Gripps and setup over
75 drum students with free product samples, bearing each respective schools color and name over the 2 day visit. Cleve sites
these actions as directly related to his reason for titling his first independent record release in 1982 " Remember
Where You Came From" Cleve believes that if you just show up with something positive to share and a good attitude, you
can do lots of good, particularly in the lives of young people. Cleve also knew early on that the Stick Gripps would be a great
learning aid for drum students, allowing them to target the fulcrum position on their drumsticks without having to go fishing
for it! Needless to say the students all loved Stick Gripps.
Stick Gripps completed a California regional test in Guitar Center Stores in December Stick
Gripps is currently headed to the national Stage in Guitar Center in 2010
Cleve sites these successful results as directly related to support he's recieved from his family, close friends, and most
of all the sale team at Guitar Center who took a moment to listen when he walked into 12 California Guitar Center stores to introduce himself and Stick Gripps in 2009
